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Dunno if anyone posted these yet, but these are the off-day schedules of the members. You can find some overlap in some of these too, which is really cute!

Chika:

Spoiler:

7:30am: Wake up
8:00am: Breakfast
9:00am: Make bento for lunch
10:00am: Ride a boat to Kanan-chan's island!
11:00am: Drag Kanan-chan away from helping out at home to play in the sea
12:00pm: Lunch with Kanan-chan♪ (Meat-floss onigiri!)
2:00pm: Go home. Get caught by elder sister and be forced to do homework.
3:00pm: Get sent on an errand by parents to Hanamaru-chan's temple. Talk about idols with Ruby-chan,
who's also come to play♡
5:00pm: Go home when the temple bell rings. TV time~♪
7:00pm: Dinner
8:00pm: Bath time!
9:00pm: Take a walk on the beach. Sing under the beautiful full moon!
10:00pm: Go to bed

Riko:

Spoiler:

7:00am: Wake up
7:30am: Breakfast
9:00am: Head to Numazu City to purchase art materials
12:00pm: Have lunch in front of the station. Meet Yocchan.
2:00pm: Get dragged on an idol study-trip in front of the station.
And then karaoke. Even though I'm bad at singing...
6:00pm: Go home
7:00pm: Dinner
8:00pm: Painting (Continuing from last)
10:30pm: Bath
11:30pm: Go to bed

8:00am: Wake up
9:00am: Breakfast
10:00am: Head towards Numazu City without an aim
11:00am: Watch a movie alone
1:00pm: Lunch (Sandwiches at Senbon beach)
2:00pm: Check out the event on the mini-stage in front of the market
3:00pm: Fashion check at the building in front of Numazu Station
5:00pm: Go home
6:00pm: Homework
7:00pm: Dinner
8:00pm: Bath
9:00pm: Coffee time in preparation for staying up late tonight
10:00pm: Surf the internet while listening to music
11:00pm: Prepare to hold a demonic ritual in the middle of the night
12:00am: Fall asleep unknowingly

Hanamaru:

Spoiler:

6:00am: Wake up
6:30am: Morning rituals (Offerings and cleaning the temple)
7:30am: Breakfast
9:00am: Choir practice
12:00pm: Go home and have lunch
1:00pm: Meet with Ruby-chan
2:00pm: Date at Numazu City♡ (Shopping)
5:00pm: Going home would be a waste so we take a stroll by the beach (And so we happen to meet Chika-chan and Kanan-chan!)
7:00pm: Go home (While trying to send Ruby-chan home, we get caught by Dia-chan and are scolded together)
8:00pm: Have dinner at Ruby-chan's place...
9:00pm: Take a bath
10:00pm: End up staying over at Ruby-chan's place and fall asleep

7:30am: Wake up
8:00am: Breakfast (I made sis mad by getting up late)
10:00am: Koto practice (My feet went numb...)
12:00pm: Lunch
1:00pm: Meet with Maru-chan♪
2:00pm: Date at Numazu City♡ (Shopping!)
5:00pm: Talking while taking a walk on the beach~☆
7:00pm: Go home (I made sis mad by coming home late)
8:00pm: Forcibly detain Maru-chan to stay for dinner!
9:00pm: Take a bath
10:00pm: Be overjoyed at Maru-chan having to stay over due to how late it's gotten!
10:30pm: Fall asleep

I love the sibling dynamic between them. I like how Dia is clearly trying hard to hit a good balance between responsible/firm older sister and loving/supporting older sister. It's strongly hinted that Dia (and Mari/Kanan) had serious past disappointments in being an idol group. It's very admirable of Dia to not be overprotective of Ruby in spite of that. Dia realizes that Ruby has to live her own life, and be enabled to chase her own dreams. At the same time, Dia does give Ruby some good hints that being a school idol will likely have its more painful aspects, such as disappointments and setbacks.

For me, Ruby's story is what I find the most emotionally compelling to Aqours so far. It's extremely well-written, probably the best-written aspect of Sunshine so far. Ruby's moment of stage-fright near the end of Episode 7 did pack a good punch. It felt very true-to-life to me, not feeling undersold or overdone. Right now, Ruby is definitely the Aqours girl I care about the most. She's a real underdog here, and that makes it very rewarding to watch her chase her dreams in spite of her fears and concerns and family issues.

Here's a thought. The group currently stands at six members, and interestingly, almost every member joined Aqours because Chika offered them something. For Riko, it was a way for her to return to music, to spend the hiatus that she took away from the Piano in something related to music, as a way for Riko to recover her muse. For Ruby, Chika offered the girl a chance to live out her dreams and passion for taking the stage as a school-idol. For Hanamaru, Aqours is a chance for her to finally be a protagonist, rather than the self-image she has as a passive observer. For Yohane, Aqours is a sanctuary for her to freely indulge in her eccentricities with the promise of acceptance, and the lack of judgement.

But there is one interesting exception to this pattern among the six first and second years. The only basis You has in Aqours, seems to be her friendship with Chika. It makes me wonder whether this friendship is going to undergo strain in the coming episodes, especially as Riko draws closer to Chika. Interestingly, the one person we see Chika continually pouring her heart out to is Riko, and not You. It makes me wonder just how aware You is about the burdens of leadership and expectations, that seems to be slowly weighing down on Chika. If Chika ever starts having self-doubt, it won't come as a shock to Riko. I'm not sure about You.

I am aware that the Aquarium PV does seem to imply that Chika and You's friendship will be tested in some way. And I have a suspicion that the fact that Chika offered You essentially nothing, to be in Aqours (You infact, volunteered on her own out of friendship), and is drawing closer to Riko while seemingly interacting less with You; is a set-up for some kind of character drama and development, revolving around the friendship of You, and Chika, and Riko's entrance into Chika's life.

At the very least, I do expect that the issue of what Aqours is to You, and how the inclusion of Riko and the First Years are altering the dynamics between the friendship of You and Chika, is going to be explored down the line.

Yep, I hope You gets more screentime, because since the arrival of Riko, she's kind of just there. In the first LL the friendship between the original trio were pretty well balanced, but this time, sometimes it seems to me that Chika has made bff with Riko... and that You is just a friend who usually tags along

Imagine for a second that you've never watched any Love Live anime episodes, and that you're not at all familiar with its characters. Somebody shows you two sets of screenshots for two different young anime girls. Based on those screenshots, would you say that the two girls are mostly similar, or mostly different? And if different, what would you say those differences are?

Here's Girl A

Spoiler for Girl A screenshots:

And here's Girl B

Spoiler for Girl B screenshots:

In my view, there's some stark differences here. And so it's with this crucial comparison that I put forward my tentative interpretation of Chika Takami's character. Warning: This will be a long post.

I considered putting this in this thread, except I really do intend for this post to be about Chika. I only intend to discuss Honoka's character to the degree that she is important to Chika... but going by my interpretation of Chika's character, that is very important. Now, let's go back over those kid images.

The Girl A (Chika) screenshots are from two different Sunshine episodes. We see Chika sitting all by herself, cheering for her swimming star friend You. Then we see Chika being encouraged by Kanan (off-screen) to jump into the water. It's clear that Chika is a bit afraid to take the plunge.

The Girl B (Honoka) screenshots are taken from Love Live Season 1 Episode 1, and the Love Live Movie. We see an adventurous girl gesturing theatrically as she climbs a tree, leading her two more cautious friends to join her. Then we see that same adventurous girl jump wildly with a very intense look on her face.

These screenshots present two very different girls. And perhaps these screenshots are reflective of who these girls are prior to their respective discoveries of "school idols".

Going by Sunshine Episode 1, Chika's introduction to school idols is through seeing a μ's video on a jumbotron screen. I think Chika was awed by μ's because μ's look like normal girls, but were nonetheless sparkling as school idols. So Chika saw real hope here. Hope for a more colorful life, hope for an escape from normalcy. This is in sharp contrast to Honoka who was searching for something to preserve something that was important to her. Honoka was already content with who she is while Chika was maybe not content with who she is.

The next is a bit of a stretch, but I think it's a logical one - I think that Chika focused on Honoka in particular, if for no other reason than Honoka is the μ's member that looks the most like Chika. Chika saw someone that looks a lot like her, but seemed to be living a dream in Chika's eyes. So because of that captivating similarity/difference mix, Chika took hold of that dream herself, and hoped to become just like Honoka.

And so Chika puts on the "Honoka Kousaka" costume. Chika's yellow "chi" shirt, did she wear that before she saw μ's on video? Or did she get that shirt as a way to be more like Honoka, given Honoka's "ho" shirt?

So Chika decides to be like Honoka. Chika pushes herself to interact more with other people, she pushes herself to put together a school idol group. And for the first 7 episodes, Chika really is loving it, for the most part. Everything is going swimmingly well for the first 7 episodes. Chika is very much enjoying playing the role of 16-year old Honoka Kousaka. Chika really is happy here... but she's also wearing a costume.

Then Episode 8 happens. Then "0" happens. It devastates Chika. That much is crystal clear, of course. But what's less clear is this - Has Chika really, truly bounced back from it yet?

Time for more Chika screenshots!

Spoiler for Sunshine Episode 9:

These 3 screenshots are from early on in Episode 9. It is from a scene of Chika being a good leader, and successfully encouraging the rest of Aqours. But then we see Chika turn around, hide away a little, and show what looks like sadness, or at least real worry.

And here in Episode 10 we see Chika again try to be a good leader for Aqours...

Spoiler for Sunshine Episode 10:

Not 1, not 2, but 3 sweat-drops! Do these sweat-drops subtly reveal something?

For a point of comparison, here is a flu-addled Honoka going against well-reasoned concern/worry coming from 7 other μ's members:

Spoiler for LL Season 1 Episode 11:

So, here's a character speculation - It's not fun for Chika anymore. Or, at least, it's not as fun. This has become more of a burden for Chika and less of a joy. Chika is actually hurting some.

Maybe Chika is just doing what she thinks she should do as "Honoka Kousaka". Chika is now doing this mostly for the sake of her friends and community. She doesn't want to let anybody down! She feels like she has to strongly push forward with Aqours because to give up or show weakness now could hurt all of her new friends, as well as her old friend You. Chika doesn't want to let them down, so Chika is keeping her more insecure feelings to herself. But Chika knows, or at least suspects, that Riko sees beyond Chika's "Honoka" costume. So Chika focuses more on Riko, as a source of cherished new friendship and comfort during a time of struggle for Chika.

Perhaps Chika's real personality is like a cross between Kotori and Hanayo. Chika is a sweet sensitive soul that finds it hard to be a take-charge leader in the aftermath of the painful "0". She's still doing it because she desperately wants to do right by the rest of Aqours.

I'll leave it at here for now. Again, tentative character interpreation. It is certainly possible I'm going a bit too far with it, and Sunshine's remaining episodes could contradict my argument. I would have liked to have had at least one more episode of "nervous leader" Chika for that added bit of evidence, but given recent Chika/You discussion on the Episode 10 thread, I figured now would be a good time to put this character interpretation out there. Because I think Chika is maybe taking more heat than she deserves, and so it might help to explain just how much of a struggle this may have become for her. Trying to be someone else, someone very different from yourself, is often not easy.

I'll leave it at here for now. Again, tentative character interpreation. It is certainly possible I'm going a bit too far with it, and Sunshine's remaining episodes could contradict my argument. I would have liked to have had at least one more episode of "nervous leader" Chika for that added bit of evidence, but given recent Chika/You discussion on the Episode 10 thread, I figured now would be a good time to put this character interpretation out there. Because I think Chika is maybe taking more heat than she deserves, and so it might help to explain just how much of a struggle this may have become for her. Trying to be someone else, someone very different from yourself, is often not easy.

Oh wow. Those are some very sharp observations, and a very entertaining and insightful post. I actually think that ironically, the best person placed to counsel Chika on the art of leadership right now, is Dia. Because like Chika, the persona Dia creates as a leader is not her natural personality.

Dia's default personality is much closer to the shy, skittish personality of Ruby; and I have a suspicion that much as Chika is a sensitive but not normally assertive person that is a blend of Hanayo and Kotori having to wear the costume of "Honoka"; Dia is in a sense, an older Ruby with some tendencies reminiscent of Nico wearing the costume of Eli.

So if they are going down the route of exploring Chika as an "insecure" leader, I think Dia might end up being the leadership mentor that Chika doesn't have so far. And since Chika is not a natural born leader for whom leadership is instinctive, but more of a fairly perceptive individual trying to take a stab at leadership for the first time in her life, she's probably going to need someone to mentor her, if leadership is a key plot point Sunshine chooses to address. It might be reading abit too much into it, but Chika's invitation of Dia into Aqours may be in some ways, a subtle request for Dia to assist Chika in her burdens as a leader.

Dia's default personality is much closer to the shy, skittish personality of Ruby; and I have a suspicion that much as Chika is a sensitive but not normally assertive person that is a blend of Hanayo and Kotori having to wear the costume of "Honoka"; Dia is in a sense, an older Ruby with some tendencies reminiscent of Nico wearing the costume of Eli.

So if they are going down the route of exploring Chika as an "insecure" leader, I think Dia might end up being the leadership mentor that Chika doesn't have so far. And since Chika is not a natural born leader for whom leadership is instinctive, but more of a fairly perceptive individual trying to take a stab at leadership for the first time in her life, she's probably going to need someone to mentor her, if leadership is a key plot point Sunshine chooses to address. It might be reading abit too much into it, but Chika's invitation of Dia into Aqours may be in some ways, a subtle request for Dia to assist Chika in her burdens as a leader.

Those are some good and very interesting thoughts.

It actually hadn't occurred to me to view Dia this way, but it is possible. It's interesting that in Episode 8, in the flashback scenes for the 3rd years, it seems like Dia is actually the most reserved one who is caught between Kanan and Mari's forceful disagreements.

Maybe the disappointments of the Dia/Kanan/Mari trio prompted Dia to try to strengthen her personality and resolve so that if Dia ever faces a situation like this in the future, she might be able to help resolve differences better. Maybe Dia looked at Eli for inspiration there. One good thing about this Dia interpretation is that Dia has in fact mentioned Eli specifically as her favorite μ's member, IIRC.

In any event, Dia is certainly someone who could mentor Chika when it comes to being a leader. Dia came across to me as forceful and charismatic in Episode 10, and Dia certainly did a good job of whipping Aqours into shape.

Saw this on Yaraon and it's an amusing chart seeing how the shipping went as the show progressed. Honestly, I'm not even sure where this data came from, but it's amusing which one is the more popular ships.

You has what I call the "Maki Factor". The "It girl" with overwhelming popularity in universe and in fandom.
Like Maki, she's sexy, an Ace, and loves wearing little hats. Yohane only beat You in the Numazu Poll because that's where she's from.
It's hard to admit this being a Little Demon.

(Yohane is #2 and Maru is 3 in popularity. )

I think part of her charm is seeing a familiar face (Kayo-chin) among the new unknown members of Aqours at the time. It's sad to say this, but everyone knew Hanayo will never get Center especially when you still have fan favorites like Umi, Rin, and Nozomi to get their own PV. That doesn't even include the past winners from repeating and take votes away from her.

What's this? yoshiriko is neck and neck with chikariko?
I'm not surprised. That was discovered through Riko's Daily Schedule and then through the power of (amazing) fanart took shape before the anime even aired.

I'm very surprised that Chika Riko is neck to neck with Yohane Riko, but I assume it's because of the sheer popularity of Guilty Kiss as a Sub-unit. I won't be surprised when the next sub-unit albums come up, and Guilty Kiss still tops the album sales - which is fascinating, because You is part of CYaRon instead. But still, why is Yohane-Riko about to over-take Chika-Riko? There hasn't been much meaningful Yohane-Riko character interactions in the anime yet.... I actually wonder how the fandom characterizes the Yohane-Riko ship, since my impression is that Guilty Kiss Yohane-Riko interactions often involve Yohane trolling Riko hard, and trying to stuff Riko into embarrassing costumes and situations.

Also, it's interesting to note that besides You (who is more or less an outlier in popularity), the next two characters with even a prayer of challenging her in terms of popularity is Yohane and Hanamaru - both of whom are first years. And given how crazily popular the Yoshiko-Maru ship is, I won't be surprised we will see even more Yoshiko-Hanamaru dynamics in Season 2. I wondered why the Yoshiko-Maru ship took off and broke away from the pack after Episode 5 actually. It makes sense that Yoshiko-Maru got a boost in Episode 5 because it was Yohane's episode. But most of Yoshiko-Maru's exchanges are often in the background in the subsequent episodes and brief sequences overshadowed by the primary drama the episode is focusing on. Yes, their chemistry is brilliant, especially their revolving straight man/manzai act where half the time, Yohane is the straight man, and the other half the time, Zuramaru is the straight man. But it's never been the focus of the anime yet.

Hanayo will never get Center especially when you still have fan favorites like Umi, Rin, and Nozomi to get their own PV. That doesn't even include the past winners from repeating and take votes away from her.

You alone also seems pretty popular from what I've come across in websurfing and chats.

Quote:

Originally Posted by playmaker2k

You has what I call the "Maki Factor". The "It girl" with overwhelming popularity in universe and in fandom.
Like Maki, she's sexy, an Ace, and loves wearing little hats. Yohane only beat You in the Numazu Poll because that's where she's from.
It's hard to admit this being a Little Demon.

I know that was a tragedy, but if they did another PV, Umi or Rin would have gotten it. Rin blew up in S2 and Umi is long overdue for Center. Nozomi at least got it for Dancing Stars, but Hanayo is still left out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by novalysis

I'm very surprised that Chika Riko is neck to neck with Yohane Riko, but I assume it's because of the sheer popularity of Guilty Kiss as a Sub-unit. I won't be surprised when the next sub-unit albums come up, and Guilty Kiss still tops the album sales - which is fascinating, because You is part of CYaRon instead. But still, why is Yohane-Riko about to over-take Chika-Riko? There hasn't been much meaningful Yohane-Riko character interactions in the anime yet.... I actually wonder how the fandom characterizes the Yohane-Riko ship, since my impression is that Guilty Kiss Yohane-Riko interactions often involve Yohane trolling Riko hard, and trying to stuff Riko into embarrassing costumes and situations.

The Yoshiriko thing started with Riko's Official Aqours Day Off Schedule. I think it's in the LL wiki. She always seems to hang out with "Yocchan". That's her exclusive nickname for Yohane. This will probably be addressed in S2. They're fellow members of Guilty Kiss and I want see their dynamic since we all know how in sync and dangerously compatible Yohane and Mari are together.
I mean, did you hear their cackles when they cook? One laughs like a Demon Queen while the other sounds like The Wicked Witch. lol

That and their seiyuus are super tight and hang out all the time. By fandom's standards, they are practically married. lol
Aikyan (Yohane) sang Happy Birthday to Rikako using her GK voice and then gave her a ring. Sakura colored.
Lastly, the fanart for them is amazing. They have some of the best artist drawing them too.

This drawing came out before the anime aired. Early foreshadowing of-chin-in-hand and after Guilty Kiss CD release.

Youchika has the childhood friends thing going for them. That's hard to beat in polls.
I feel bad for Dia. Ever since the "hug", people have jumped ship. It's hard not to.

The Yoshiriko thing started with Riko's Official Aqours Day Off Schedule. I think it's in the LL wiki. She always seems to hang out with "Yocchan". That's her exclusive nickname for Yohane. This will probably be addressed in S2. They're fellow members of Guilty Kiss and I want see their dynamic since we all know how in sync and dangerously compatible Yohane and Mari are together.
I mean, did you hear their cackles when they cook? One laughs like a Demon Queen while the other sounds like The Wicked Witch. lol

That and their seiyuus are super tight and hang out all the time. By fandom's standards, they are practically married. lol
Aikyan (Yohane) sang Happy Birthday to Rikako using her GK voice and then gave her a ring. Sakura colored.
Lastly, the fanart for them is amazing. They have some of the best artist drawing them too.

For Guilty Kiss dynamics to be really explored in their full glory, sub-units probably would have to be acknowledged and a plot-point in Sunshine S2, else we simply get a few winks and nods the fandom ala random background Nico-Maki scenes in Love Live Season 2. Still, I'm sure they know the popularity of Guilty Kiss, hence scenes such as Yohane and Mari cackling together while producing some truly hideous looking but surprisingly edible food in Episode 10, or Mari partnering with the entirety of Guilty Kiss during the Episode 9 insert song in the Summer Festival.

I'm sure if S2 has an episode dedicated to the Yoshiko-Riko ship, there would be lots of NTR jokes thrown around with regards to the Chika-Riko ship that's taken prime position in the first season. Thanks for explaining!

P.s: Why is Yoshimaru so popular though? I mean, they are an amazing Manzai duo with hilarious Boke and Tsukkomi routines in the anime in the background- or is it the childhood friend effect also driving the Yoshimaru ship?